Technical Field
This invention relates in general to the field of occupant restraint systems and more particularly, but not by way of limitation to, systems and methods that assist with the depression of actuator buttons on restraint harnesses.
Background
Occupant restraint systems are well known. They typically have a first piece of belting having a buckle at one end and an opposite end is anchored in place. The anchoring may be either by direct fastening or via a device such as a retractor. A tongue is attached to a free end of a second piece of belting whose opposite end is also anchored. When the restraint system is in use to restrain a seated occupant, the two pieces of belting are connected by inserting the tongue of the second piece of belting into the buckle of the first piece of belting and adjusting the restraint around the occupant.
The buckle comprises a casing which contains a spring-loaded latching mechanism for releaseably latching the buckle to the tongue. A typical buckle casing comprises an aperture which exposes an actuating button for depression by a person's thumb or fingertip to cause the latching mechanism to release the buckle from the latched condition. In today's typical buckle, the area of the actuating button, which is exposed by the aperture, approximates that of the thumb or fingertip. The actuating button surface against which the thumb or fingertip presses is generally flush with the surface of the casing containing the aperture. Oftentimes, a smaller version of this same type of buckle and actuating button assembly is used in child restraint seats designed to secure an occupant, such as a baby or child, in place. The actuating button assembly installed in child restraint seats is regulated by the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS), which recommends a minimum required release force to depress the actuating button of 40 N (Newton) or 9.0 lbf (pound-force).
For any of a number of various reasons, a person may be impaired from depressing the actuating button with this amount of force and, thus, unable to unlatch a child restraint seat buckle of this type. For instance, caregivers may have arthritis in their hands, which impacts the strength with which they can apply pressure in their thumbs to sufficiently depress the actuator button with the required force to release the buckle and remove the child from the car seat. With the increase in the number of grandparent caregivers, the lack of required thumb or finger strength presents a significant problem for the convenience of mobility in an automotive vehicle while caring for a young child. Further, the situation poses risks to child safety if the caregiver does not properly buckle the child to thereby make it easier for the caregiver to release the buckle when necessary. In addition to arthritis, other circumstances may arise where caregivers lack sufficient hand strength, including carpel tunnel syndrome, tendonitis and chronic or temporary conditions or injuries.
The existing prior art in U.S. Pat. No. 8,539,862, which is incorporated herein by reference, seeks to address many of the foregoing difficulties. However, for those with arthritis in their hands and fingers, gripping edges of the housing element is difficult or painful, resulting in an inadequate ability to exert the required pressure to release the buckle. Additionally, the prior art lacks a backing to support the intended use, resulting in the need to position a free hand without guidance, or to push hard against the occupant of the car seat and apply uncomfortable pressure. The prior art offers no method for reducing or otherwise alleviating the amount of force required by the user to release the buckle.
Other attempts at addressing the above described difficulties include the use of pliers to depress the button to release the buckle from the latched condition. For example, a pair of standard pliers may be modified to have a protrusion on an end thereof to allow the protrusion to press the release button when the pliers are closed. However, this solution does not address the difficulty experienced by users with arthritis and other hand ailments. Oftentimes, users with arthritis have a difficult time using scissors or pliers due to the manual dexterity required. Therefore, a solution is needed that allows the button to be depressed in a method that requires minimal thumb or finger strength.
In another prior art attempt to address the above described difficulties, a lever arm is attached to the seat belt below the buckle. The lever arm has a protrusion thereon so that when force is applied to an opposite end of the lever, the protrusion depresses the button. While this solution allows pressure to be applied using the palm of the hand, rather than relying on individual finger strength, it requires a user to apply pressure straight into the buckle. This is often difficult to accomplish because the parent or guardian is normally reaching in from the side of the car seat when trying to unbuckle the occupant. One additional drawback of this type of lever arm is that it requires the device to be affixed to the strap of the car seat as a source of leverage, which poses a safety risks if a child learns to use the device to release the latch, but lacks the maturity to know when it is safe to do so. By remaining affixed to the car seat, the device has the potential to enable a child to release the latch while the car is in motion.